IRM Group appoints Richa Ahuja Sharma as Head – HR & Administration

IRM Group, the non-pharma business arm of Cadila Pharmaceuticals, has appointed Richa Ahuja Sharma as Head – HR & Administration, strengthening its senior leadership team as it expands across multiple business verticals.

Based in Ahmedabad, Sharma will oversee human resources and administrative functions across the group’s portfolio, which spans agriculture, animal health, engineering, facilities management and aviation services.

The appointment comes as IRM Group consolidates its diversified operations under a unified growth strategy, with a renewed focus on workforce capability and operational alignment.

Sharma brings more than 17 years of experience in human resources leadership across manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, financial services and consumer sectors. She previously served as Vice President – HR & Administration at Junomoneta Finsol Private Limited. Her earlier roles include leadership positions at Sintex, Piramal Pharma, Lotte India – Havmor Ice Creams Limited, Arvind and Cadila Pharmaceuticals.

An alumna of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta’s Executive Programme in Leadership Management, Sharma has worked on organisational design, workforce transformation and HR process standardisation in growth-stage and established businesses.

In her new role, she will be responsible for aligning people strategy with business objectives, strengthening leadership capability and building scalable HR frameworks across IRM Group’s operations.

IRM Group operates through several business verticals, including CAdAgro, focused on agricultural and bio-solutions; VetNova, serving the animal health segment; a Pharma Machinery division supplying equipment to pharmaceutical manufacturers; Facilities Management Services; and IRM Aviation, which provides specialised air transportation support.

The leadership move reflects a broader trend among diversified industrial groups to professionalise HR functions and embed people strategy more closely into operational planning, particularly as businesses expand across sectors with differing regulatory and workforce requirements.

As IRM Group scales its non-pharma operations, the effectiveness of its integrated human capital strategy is likely to play a central role in sustaining growth across its varied business lines.